Power boat races, Elizabeth City State University?s Homecoming celebration and the annual Potato Festival are among many popular tourism attractions that pump needed revenue into the local economy.

But there?s another movement afoot to increase tourism throughout the Albemarle and it?s being led by outdoors enthusiasts and environmental groups. Together, the groups are working to promote nature through a new venue known as nature tourism.

The groups are building a network of paddling trails and camping platforms that stretch from northern Pasquotank and Camden counties near the Virginia line, to Winfall, Hertford, Belvidere and Edenton. The goal is to form a large, connected network of places for bicyclists, hikers, campers, canoers, kayakers and bird watchers to enjoy, according to Mark Powell, coordinator of the Albemarle Resource Conservation and Development Council. The council is an Edenton-based nonprofit organization designed to promote mote a balance of resource conservation and economic development, according to its March newsletter.

?We want to focus on improving the infrastructure for canoeing and kayaking throughout the region so we can market it regionally, so folks can come and spend more than one day,? Powell said.

Among the region?s greatest assets are its rivers and streams, he said.

?They?re absolutely beautiful,? Powell said. ?We want to take advantage of these assets and develop a nature tourism industry in the region.?

To get a birds-eye view of the natural treasures, a series of paddle camping platforms, connected to trails, is under construction.

Thanks to a $50,000 grant from the N.C. Recreational Trail Program there will be four paddle camping platforms on the upper Pasquotank River, which should improve access sites for canoes and kayaks. Two offshore platforms have been built on Goat Island along the Pasquotank River in the Pine Lakes area off North Road Street, he said.

Two more are under construction, one behind the Knobbs Creek Recreation Center in Elizabeth City, and the other off the Brickhouse Point property, which is owned by the U.S. Coast Guard, Powell said.

The platforms, each 16 by 24 feet, can accommodate two tents and are accessible by water.

There also are portable toilet facilities, and the platforms are connected to the water by a boardwalk.

The platforms should be ready for public use by May, Powell said. The project is a partnership between Pasquotank County, the Paths of Pasquotank, and Albemarle RC&D, he said.

Chowan County also received a $35,000 N.C. Recreational Trail grant, which is helping to pay for a triple camping platform on John?s Island on the Chowan River near Edenton, plus two other single platforms, he said.

The Chowan platforms are located at the intersection of three existing paddle trails: Pembroke Creek Trail, Queen Anne Creek Trail and the Trestle House Inn Trail. They also should be ready for public use in May.

In Perquimans County, a $100,000 Golden Leaf Foundation grant has been awarded for construction of eight platforms near Hertford. Of the eight, there will be a triple platform and a double platform along the river, then a single platform on Raccoon Creek and a double platform on Mill Creek.

Powell said Mill Creek and the Perquimans River are recognized by the state for their richness in bird populations.

In addition, the N.C. Paddle Association is helping the Albemarle RC&D update mile markers and access signs along several miles of paddle trails in Pasquotank, Perquimans, Camden and Chowan counties.

?RC&D helped all three counties get grants,? said Powell. The council?s March newsletter also stated: ?The work of the RC&D Council is particularly important considering the rapid pace of development in the Albemarle Region.?

Besides creating and improving trails, the RC&D also recently helped several local counties clear debris caused by Hurricane Isabel.